Karbonity: Making Carbon Compensation a Reality for Everyone

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

Erick Romero

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

Individual

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

6

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language.

No

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Karbonity harnesses Cardano's native assets and blockchain technology, along with smart contracts, to offer a low-cost, swift, decentralized platform for token creation, trading, and management.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

No dependencies

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

Yes

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

All smart contracts will be open source and reviewed by a third party

[METADATA] SDG rating

1. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for al
2. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for al
3. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impact

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution.

Karbonity's journey in transforming carbon credit trading has established a firm foundation with ongoing developments and future-focused enhancements.

Initially, we achieved significant progress by deploying a platform on a pre-production network. This platform encompasses essential functionalities such as the creation, updating, and retiring of CGUs. Alongside this, we've implemented a smart-contract-powered marketplace, providing personalized user access and streamlining transactions.

Currently, our primary focus is on enhancing and fortifying our platform. This involves conducting an in-depth review of our smart contracts to identify and resolve any vulnerabilities. We are also emphasizing the enhancement of Transaction Flow and specifically targeting the security of database mutation processes to ensure data integrity and robust protection. In addition, we are developing comprehensive documentation and validation procedures for CGU validation. A substantial portion of our efforts is dedicated to refining the platform's UI/UX, with an emphasis on user-friendliness and efficiency.

In the future, Karbonity will further expand its technological frontier. We plan to integrate more sophisticated tools like Large Language Models (LLMs) and leverage third-party APIs, computer vision, and DAOs. These advancements will propel our platform towards greater automation and innovation, solidifying our role in making carbon credit trading more accessible and efficient for a wider audience.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community.

Our integration with Cardano tools aims to resolve the carbon credit challenge, drive community growth and global change. We'll measure impact via:

• Efficient CGUs issuance and trading.
• Broader participation from diverse entities.
• Comparative activity metrics with traditional systems.
• Increased Cardano ecosystem engagement.

We will maintain transparency through feedback channels and regular reporting.

As we launch on mainnet, exciting new opportunities will add to our existing achievements, bringing innovation to our users:

• Expand CGU generation to Stake Pool Operators, tapping into a new frontier of carbon offset possibilities.
• Venture into forestry and agriculture sectors using real-time monitoring satellite technology and blockchain oracles for high transparency in CGU generation.
• Facilitate liquidity in the marketplace by allowing fractional trading of certificates by tokenization for those with abundant CGUs.

Looking beyond our mainnet launch, we're planning strategic future enhancements to further elevate our project post-deployment.

• Integrating LLMs to streamline and optimize CGU validation.
• Enhanced transaction builder execution.
• Integrating machine vision, IoT, and energy suppliers APIs to expedite validation.
• Implementing a DAO to decentralize and secure validation processes.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

The team has successfully developed and deployed the platform on Cardano Preprod network incorporating functionalities like minting, validating, and retiring carbon certificates, as well as a marketplace for trading them. The platform is being tested and improved as feedbacks are received from potencial users. The team is also involved in commercial efforts, onboarding key Brazilian CGUs producers.

Erick Romero and Tainá Bugs, at the helm of this project, combine extensive tech expertise with strategic acumen. Erick's decade-long experience in tech, enriched by his engineering, renewable energy, and project management background, drives the project's direction in blockchain and renewable energy integration. Tainá, with her engineering and web design background along with her experience in the energy sector leads our platform's front-end and UI/UX development, ensuring a perfect blend of technical proficiency and user-focused design.

The Karbonity team is operating at full capacity, making significant strides in the development and enhancement of our platform. This funding will supplement our existing efforts, ensuring we maintain the momentum needed to achieve this critical phase of our project, affirming our commitment to delivering a robust and reliable platform on mainnet.

Cardano Preprod Network Prototype: https://preprod.karbonity.com

[Project Milestones] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Having successfully run Karbonity on the preprod network, we are now gearing up for mainnet deployment, following the achievement of key milestones:

 

Smart Contracts Third Party Review

Expected Duration: 1 month

Expected Cost: 50,000 ADA

A collaboration with elite, well-respected entities within the Cardano ecosystem is set to elevate our platform's trustworthiness. These entities, known for their rigorous code scrutiny and blockchain proficiency, have provided us with preliminary commitments to review our smart contracts. Their unparalleled expertise will be instrumental in dissecting our on-chain code, assessing for vulnerabilities, and ensuring the highest standards of quality and security. The process will be spearheaded by accomplished technical leaders and developers, culminating in a meticulous report and strategic guidance for robust enhancements.

Success Criteria: Delivery of a detailed review report from a reputable source, endorsing our platform's security and efficiency.

Issue Addressal & Final Review Report

Expected Duration: 1 month

Expected Cost: 10,000 ADA

After the review, we'll fix any weaknesses or problems mentioned in the review report.

Success Criteria: Successful resolution of the identified weaknesses and problems.

Enhancing Transaction Flow and Database Security

Expected Duration: 2 months

Expected Cost: 26,250 ADA

Focus on securing the transaction flow and reinforcing database mutation processes. This includes reviewing and strengthening transaction flows and optimizing database operations for enhanced security and efficiency.

Success Criteria: Successful passing of all security and performance tests.

Front-end and backend improvements

Expected Duration: Ongoing

Expected Cost: 16,250 ADA

Improving the user interface and experience by incorporating user feedback, and optimizing the UI for desktop, tablet, and mobile platforms.

Success Criteria: working and responsive UI.

CGUs validation framework and procedures

Expected Duration: 1 month

Expected Cost: 7,500 ADA

Develop comprehensive procedures and guidelines for CGU validation, including user manuals and whitepapers to ensure accuracy and reliability.

Success Criteria: procedures, guidelines, user manuals and whitepaper deliverables.

Onboarding users

Expected Duration: Ongoing

Expected Cost: 29,200 ADA

Develop an extensive user onboarding strategy, leading users from creating wallets to navigating the platform with an emphasis on security. Utilize Twitter, Discord, and YouTube as key community platforms, and employ strategic marketing to boost platform visibility.

Success Criteria: Active engagement and growing follower counts on Twitter, Discord and YouTube

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Erick Romero | Software Architect, Product Owner & Business Strategy

LinkedIn: (35) Erick Romero | LinkedIn

Twitter: (1) Erick Romero (@ErickRomeroEdda) / X (twitter.com)

As the Software Architect and Product Owner, Erick plays a crucial role in shaping the technical architecture of our platform. He is also instrumental in steering the overall business strategy, bringing together his extensive experience in software development and strategic planning.

Taina Bugs | Front-end, UI/UX Design, Business Operations & Social Media Manager

LinkedIn: (16) Tainá Bugs | LinkedIn

Responsible for Front-end Development and UI/UX Design, ensuring the platform is both aesthetically pleasing and user-friendly. Additionally, she handles Business Operations and manages social media, playing a key role in operational management and online community engagement.

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

Smart Contracts Third Party Review

• Smart Contracts Review: 50,000 ADA

Total: 50,000 ADA

Issue Addressal & Final Review Report

• Software Architecture: 20 days * 500 ADA = 10,000 ADA

Total: 10,000 ADA

Enhancing Transaction Flow and Database Security

• Software Architecture: 45 days * 500 ADA = 22,500 ADA
• UI/UX: 10 days * 375 ADA = 3,750 ADA

Total: 26,250 ADA

Front-end and backend improvements

• UI/UX: 30 days * 375 ADA = 11,250 ADA
• Software Architecture: 10 days * 500 ADA = 5,000 ADA

Total: 16,250 ADA

 

CGUs validation framework and procedures

• Business Operations: 20 days * 375 ADA = 7,500 ADA

Total: 7,500 ADA

Onboarding users

• Business Strategy: 5 days * 500 ADA = 2,500 ADA
• Business Operations: 20 days * 375 ADA = 7,500 ADA
• Social Media: 20 days * 375 ADA = 7,500 ADA
• Marketing Costs: 180 days * 50 ADA = 9,000 ADA
• IT Infrastructure Costs: 180 days * 15 ADA = 2,700 ADA

Total: 29,200 ADA

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

Karbonity offers exceptional value for money for the Cardano ecosystem by significantly expanding its user base and promoting blockchain adoption. Focused initially on Brazil's booming solar energy market, we target 2.1 million Consumption Units already engaged in solar power production. This segment alone, growing rapidly with an 84.9% increase in installed PV systems from 2021, constitutes nearly 60% of Cardano's existing 3.5 million user base. By integrating these users into our platform, we introduce a substantial new user group to the Cardano blockchain.

The investment in our project not only brings a massive influx of users but also escalates blockchain transaction volumes and enhances Cardano's visibility. Our scalable model, while starting in Brazil, has global applicability, further amplifying its value to the Cardano ecosystem.

The funds we are requesting, while partial, are essential in enabling us to achieve our next critical milestone: the secure and successful deployment of our platform on the mainnet. This support is pivotal for our continued progress and successful launch.

[IMPORTANT NOTE] The Applicant agrees to Fund Rules and also that data in the submission form and other data provided by the project team during the course of the project will be publicly available.

I Accept